Wombles in Carphone Warehouse adverts

29 April 201815 April 2012by Tara Stockford

The Wombles and Bernard Cribbins are appearing in the latest advertising campaign for mobile phone retailer Carphone Warehouse.

Press, radio and billboard adverts were launched on 13 April, on a theme of ‘waste’. The printed adverts are illustrated by Nick Price in the same style as the current Wombles books published by Bloomsbury: one image shows Tomsk pushing a wheelbarrow overflowing with banknotes, while another shows Tobermory vacuuming up banknotes.

In the radio adverts, The Wombling Song plays in the background with a voiceover by Bernard Cribbins. One advert says:

“Nothing bothers a Womble more than waste. Did you know you could be wasting £194 a year on the wrong phone tariff? With over 7 million options, how could you possibly know if you’re on the right one? The networks will only show you theirs. But Carphone Warehouse compares a range of networks, tariffs and phones to find the perfect combination for you. For independent advice, talk to Carphone Warehouse.”

Another advert says: “We’re on Wimbledon Common, and the Wombles have never seen so much waste. In fact, Britain’s wasting a staggering £173 million pounds a year, just by going over phone data limits. But with more unlimited data packages than anyone else, Carphone Warehouse can help. Their T-Mobile, Three and Talkmobile tariffs start at an incredible £12 a month. For independent advice, talk to Carphone Warehouse.”

Carphone Warehouse says that £5 billion is being wasted by mobile phone users each year as a result of people not being on the deal that’s best for them. On average, being on the wrong tariff costs each person £194 a year, according to independent research.

Andrew Harrison, CEO of Carphone Warehouse Europe, said: “When the UK is facing one of the hardest financial times in living memory, it seems crazy that £5 billion is being wasted on phone bills. At Carphone Warehouse, we want people to enjoy their smartphones without it costing them an arm and a leg. We’ll compare every network and phone combination and give independent advice on which deal is best.”